The shekel
The term "shekel" originates from the Hebrew word "שֶׁקֶל" (sheqel), which means "weight." In ancient Israel, the shekel was both a unit of weight and currency. It was used in trade and temple offerings, signifying fairness and integrity in economic transactions. The shekel's use underscores the importance of just measures, a principle deeply rooted in the Mosaic Law, emphasizing honesty and righteousness in dealings.

will consist of twenty gerahs
A "gerah" is a small unit of weight, derived from the Hebrew "גֵּרָה" (gerah), meaning "a grain" or "kernel." This reflects the meticulous nature of ancient measurements, where even the smallest units were accounted for. The specification of twenty gerahs to a shekel highlights the precision and care in maintaining equitable standards, reflecting God's desire for order and justice in society.

Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels
This phrase outlines a specific calculation, totaling sixty shekels, which equates to one mina. The detailed enumeration of shekels emphasizes the importance of accuracy and transparency in financial matters. Historically, such precision was crucial for maintaining trust and integrity in communal and religious life. It serves as a reminder of the biblical principle that God values honesty and precision in all aspects of life.

will equal one mina
The "mina" is a larger unit of weight and currency, derived from the Hebrew "מָנֶה" (maneh). It was used in the ancient Near East and represents a significant amount of wealth. The conversion of shekels to a mina illustrates the structured economic system in biblical times, ensuring that larger transactions were conducted with the same integrity as smaller ones. This reflects the biblical theme of stewardship, where believers are called to manage resources wisely and faithfully.

(12) The shekel.--The first part of this verse is merely a re-statement of the old law (Exodus 30:13; Leviticus 27:25; Numbers 3:47) that the shekel should be of the value of twenty gerahs, or of the estimated weight of 220 grains; but the latter part of the verse is extremely obscure. The maneh is mentioned elsewhere only in 1Kings 10:17; Ezra 2:69; Neh. vii 71, and is translated in our version pound. Its actual value is unknown. If the text as it stands is correct, it is possible that in Ezekiel's time three different manehs were in use, of the values respectively assigned to them; but of this there is no other evidence.

Verse 12. - The shekel shall be twenty garahs. This ordained that the standard for money weights should remain as it had been fixed by the Law (Exodus 30:13; Leviticus 27:25; Numbers 3:47). The "shekel" (or "weight," from שָׁקַל, "to weigh;" compare the Italian lira, the French livre out of the Latin libra, and the English Found sterling) was a piece of silver whose value, originally determined by weight, became gradually fixed at the definite sum of twenty "gerahs," beans, or grains (from גָּרַר, "to roll"). The "gerah," value two pence, was the smallest silver coin; the "shekel," therefore, was forty pence, or 3s. 4d. Commentators are divided as to how the second half of this verse should be understood: twenty shekel, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels shall be your maneh. The "maneh" (or "portion," from מָנָה, "to be divided"), which occurs only here and in 1 Kings 10:17; Ezra 2:69; and Nehemiah 7:71, 72 - "that is to say, only in books written during the Captivity or subsequent to it" (Keil) - was probably the same coin as the Greek rains (μνᾶ), though its weight may have somewhat differed. A comparison of 1 Kings 10:17 with 2 Chronicles 9:16 shows that a maneh was equal to a hundred shekels, which cannot be made to harmonize with the statement in this verse without supposing either that an error has crept in through transcription, or that the chronicler has employed the late Greek style of reckoning, in which one mina is equivalent to a hundred drachmas. Again, the Hebrew and Attic talents, when ex-stained, fail to solve the problem as to how the text should be rendered. The Hebrew talent, כִּכָּר, contained 3000 sacred or Mosaic shekels according to Exodus 38:25, 26; and the Attic talon 60 minas, each of 100 drachmas, i.e. 6000 drachmas, or 3000 drachmas, each of which again was equal to a Hebrew shekel. Hence the Attic mina must have been one-sixtieth part of 3000, i.e. 50 shekels, which once more fails to correspond with Ezekiel's notation. What this notation is depends on how the clauses should be connected. If with "and," as Ewald, following the Targumists, thinks, Ezekiel is supposed to have ordained that in the future the maneh should be, not 50, but 60 (20 + 25 -1- 15) shekels - the weight of the 'Babylonian mana ('Records of the Past,' 4:97, second series); only, if he so intended, one sees not why he should have adopted this roundabout method of expression instead of simply stating that henceforth the maneh should be sixty shekels If with "or," as Michaelis, Gesenius, Hitzig, and Hengstenberg prefer, then the prophet is regarded as asserting that in the future three manehs of varying values should be current - one of gold, another of silver, and a third of copper (Hitzig), or all of the same metal, but of different magnitudes (Michaelis); and this arrangement might well have been appointed for the future, although no historical trace can be found of any such manehs of twenty, twenty-five, and fifteen shekels respectively having been in circulation either among the Hebrews or among foreign peoples. Kliefoth pronounces both solutions unsatisfactory, but has nothing better to offer. Keil supposes a corruption of the text of old standing, for the correction of which we are as yet without materials. Bertheau and Havernick follow the LXX. (Cod. Alex.), Οἱ πέντε σίκλοι πέντε καὶ δέκα  σίκλοι δέκα καὶ πεντήκοντα σίκλοι ἡ μνᾶ ἐσται ὑμῖν, "The five shekel (piece) shall be five shekels, and the ten shekel (piece) shall be tea shekels, end fifty shekels shall your maneh be;" but Hitzig's judgment on this proposal, with which Kliefoth and Keil agree, will most likely be deemed correct, that "it carries on the face of it the probability of its resting upon nothing more than an attempt to bring the text into harmony with the ordinary value of the maneh."

Parallel Commentaries ...


The shekel
וְהַשֶּׁ֖קֶל (wə·haš·še·qel)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 8255: A weight, a commercial standard

will consist of twenty
עֶשְׂרִ֣ים (‘eś·rîm)
Number - common plural
Strong's 6242: Twenty, twentieth

gerahs.
גֵּרָ֑ה (gê·rāh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 1626: A gerah (one-twentieth of a shekel)

Twenty
עֶשְׂרִ֨ים (‘eś·rîm)
Number - common plural
Strong's 6242: Twenty, twentieth

shekels
שְׁקָלִ֜ים (šə·qā·lîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 8255: A weight, a commercial standard

plus twenty-five
וְעֶשְׂרִ֣ים (wə·‘eś·rîm)
Conjunctive waw | Number - common plural
Strong's 6242: Twenty, twentieth

shekels
שְׁקָלִ֗ים (šə·qā·lîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 8255: A weight, a commercial standard

plus fifteen
עֲשָׂרָ֤ה (‘ă·śā·rāh)
Number - masculine singular
Strong's 6235: Ten

shekels
שֶׁ֔קֶל (še·qel)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 8255: A weight, a commercial standard

will equal
יִֽהְיֶ֥ה (yih·yeh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

one mina.
הַמָּנֶ֖ה (ham·mā·neh)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4488: A fixed weight, measured amount, a maneh, mina


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OT Prophets: Ezekiel 45:12 The shekel shall be twenty gerahs (Ezek. Eze Ezk)